Canola Quick Bytes

A supplement to U.S. Canola Digest

Capitol Hill

On Nov. 30, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the Final Rule setting the Renewable Fuel Standard volume requirements, including the volume requirements for biomass-based diesel for 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. The Final Rule sets the biomass-based diesel volumes at the following levels:
• 2014 – 1.63 billion gallons
• 2015 – 1.73 billion gallons
• 2016 – 1.9 billion gallons
• 2017 – 2.0 billion gallons
These volume levels represent a modest improvement over the Proposed Rule, which called for 1.63 billion gallons in 2014, 1.7 billion in 2015, 1.8 billion in 2016 and 1.9 billion in 2017. By setting requirements through 2017, this Final Rule provides some certainty to the biodiesel and canola markets and should enable the EPA in future years to return to the schedule required under the law.

Following the Thanksgiving week recess, Washington will take up an ambitious end-of-year agenda including tax, transportation and appropriations policies. Among the issues directly impacting farmers and the canola industry, Congress and the White House are currently negotiating a final tax extenders package to restore the biodiesel tax credit retroactively for 2015 and beyond. Congress also aims to pass legislation reauthorizing highway and transit programs prior to adjourning for the year. The Highway Bill ensures the continuation of federal funding to states for construction and maintenance of roads, bridges and transit systems. In addition, as part of a pledge by Congressional leadership, the agricultural industry expects $3 billion in crop insurance cuts included in the Bipartisan Budget Act in October to be reversed in the upcoming appropriations bill for FY2016. It is unknown, however, if or how this pledge will be fulfilled. For more details, see the USCA blog.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued guidance for manufacturers who wish to voluntarily label their products as containing ingredients from biotech or non-biotech sources. The FDA recommended that manufacturers not use food labeling claims to indicate that a food is “free” of ingredients derived through the use of biotechnology. Instead, it advised other types of statements to indicate that a plant-derived food has not been produced by bioengineering. The guidance also noted that “a statement may be false or misleading if, when considered in the context of the entire label or labeling … it suggests or implies that a food product or ingredient is safer, more nutritious, or otherwise has different attributes than other comparable foods because the food was not genetically engineered.”

Agronomy

Before purchasing seeds for 2016, research variety performance, including the entire agronomic package on top of yield numbers, advised an agronomist in Grainnews. Start with the Canola Performance Trials for comparison numbers in areas such as yield, days to maturity and standability. When gathering data, look for both local performance and data that’s been replicated within a site and in multiple sites or over many years for a complete picture of performance and yield stability.

Canola meal boosts milk production in cows and improves methane emissions compared to soybean meal, according to a team of Swedish scientists. The researchers evaluated different levels of dietary crude protein from soybean meal or moisture-treated canola meal on cows eating a total mixed ration with a grass- and silage-based diet. Including canola meal in dairy rations improved milk yield and protein in the past, but little prior research had been done using canola in a total mixed ration.

Nutrition

You’ve probably heard of the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet, but the Nordic diet is gaining traction as a heart-healthy alternative, according to the Harvard Medical School blog. Like the Mediterranean diet, the Nordic diet focuses on plant-based foods but it favors canola oil instead of olive oil for healthy fat, specifically omega-3. Nordic diet staples also include high-quality whole grains, vegetables (especially cabbage and root ones), fatty fish such as salmon and legumes.

When you think of your favorite holiday dish, the bread basket probably doesn’t spring to mind. However, these honey wholegrain mini corn muffins may change that. Using canola oil rather than butter makes them moist and tender, with more healthful fat, wrote cookbook author and registered dietitian Ellie Krieger. These muffins are anything but soft as the cornmeal grain and fresh corn kernels give them the traditional cornbread texture.

Canola oil tops the list of seven pantry essentials dietitians always have on hand, published on U.S. News & World Report. Canola oil should be kept around for its low saturated fat content, noted registered dietitian Julie Upton. She cited a study last year in the journal Diabetes Care which found that people with type 2 diabetes who ate a low-glycemic diet with canola oil experienced better blood sugar control compared to those who ate more whole-grain carbs and less unsaturated fat. The researchers concluded that canola oil helps keep blood sugar levels more stable.

Other Contry News

The Australian Oilseed Federation cut its canola crop forecast in Victoria from the 456,000 tonnes forecast in August to 350,000 tonnes. “Many growers chose not to plant canola in Victoria on expectation of a drier season, with 100,000 hectares less planted than the year before,” according to the federation.

Two fields of canola with clubroot galls were found in Manitoba, Canada, reported the Manitoba Co-operator. The two fields had enough clubroot spores this year to produce yield-robbing root galls that characterize the soil-borne disease, said an agronomist. There are now five Manitoba fields with confirmed clubroot galls. Experts are advising farmers to get their soil tested, grow canola less often in their rotation and use resistant varieties if clubroot is close by.

Latest Inudstry News

Viterra, Inc., a subsidiary of Glencore International, announced Nov. 25 that it will purchase canola for Pacific Coast Canola, LLC. Viterra will procure canola and operate the canola crushing facility in Warden, Wash., under the terms of the agreement. Viterra will post a daily bid for canola for the Warden facility. More resources available at Viterra.com through myViterra, a mobile-friendly website for accessing prices.

The 2015 Prairie Grains Conference will be Thursday, Dec. 10 at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, N.D. This conference combines the annual conventions of the Minnesota Association of Wheat Growers, Minnesota Barley Growers Association, Minnesota Soybean Growers of Northern Minnesota, NCTC Farm Business Management, North Dakota Barley Council, North Dakota Grain Growers Association and Minnesota Farm Bureau. Business meetings and an on-farm research session will be Dec. 9.

The Canola Council of Canada released a new guide on canola meal. Last updated in 2009, it includes updated nutrient profiles, feed usage options and new research on how meal can best be used by producers and benefit livestock, poultry and fish. The guide is targeted at animal nutritionists.

About the USCA

The U.S. Canola Association is a member of the Honey Bee Health Coalition – one of over 30 organizations and agencies from across the food, agriculture, government and conservation spectrum that have come together to protect honey bees and ensure their long-term health. Learn more about this coalition in this new video or at Honeybeehealthcoalition.org.

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